The two North Carolina class battleships (North Carolina and Washington) were the first US battleships to be commissioned after the 1922 Washington Naval treaty banning capital ship production for 10 years. Both ships were in commission prior to World War 2 and saw a great deal of action during the conflict. Most of their time was spent as carrier escorts although they performed some bombardment work. The Washington is credited with sinking the Japanese battlecruiser Kirishima in November of 1942 off Guadalcanal during what was probably the first US battleship vs. battleship engagement.

The Classic Warship kit sells for $295 ($260 waterline). The kit's many parts enable the builder to depict either Washington or North Carolina in any configuration (and there were quite a few) from their commissioning through late 1942 (North Carolina) or early 1943 (Washington).   And you can finish the model in any of three paint schemes.  The two ships wore the simple Ms 1 paint scheme in 1941, and then adopted Ms 12 Mod (the wavy version of Ms 12) early-to-mid 1942.  If these schemes aren't to your liking, complete the model as Washington from late 1942 through early 1943 when she wore Ms 22.

This is a multi-media kit with resin, white metal, and photo-etched brass parts. The hull, superstructure, and gun turrets are resin with fittings and gun barrels cast from white metal. Two etched brass sheets are included, a generic rails/ladders fret and a sheet with the catapults, cranes, radars, and 0.50 cal mgs carried by North Carolina class ships. Resin cast parts are clean with no air bubbles and very little flash. The white metal parts are also well done, including gun barrels with the proper circular cross-section, not easy to accomplish in this media. There was some flash present but the overall white metal quality was good.

Detail is first-rate. The finished model has the proper busy look, its decks crowded with fittings, vents, doors, hatches, etc. The only substitution I would suggest, if financially practical, is replace the kit turrets with those from the MB South Dakota kit, whose turrets have the proper top/side rivet detail.    This is lacking on the Classic Warship's 16" turrets.  However carley floats were often stowed atop the turrets so the lack of detail can be hidden. You will need to fabricate the masts from brass or plastic rod (not included), but clear instructions make this a straightforward task.

Two 1:350 sets of plans (one for general arrangement and the other for camouflage patterns) are included. The instructions are well laid out and clearly illustrated, a big improvement over earlier Classic Warship efforts. There are some deficiencies, however.  They provide no guidance on building the catapults and cranes; nor do they specify the exact location of the superstructures that sit atop the boat deck.  This is important because there are no locating tabs to prevent the modeler from mis-aligning these parts.  Use the 1:350 plans to determine the proper location. These plans are essential in building this model and should answer most of your questions. It is also worth noting that instructions include a useful table listing both armament and propeller arrangements during the 1941-1942 time frame.  This will help you sort out the proper fit for the period you choose to depict.  Unfortunately, there is no parts list to help you inventory the many resin and white metal pieces.